A ONE DAY PACKED LE CONFERENCE BREACHING THE BARRICADE

Thomas Lemmer is a retired Chicago Police Department (CPD) deputy chief, and he has worked within the field of public safety for more than four decades. He has extensive experience as a law enforcement officer, trainer, supervisor and executive. He holds B.A. and M.A. degrees in Criminal Justice, and for seven years he was an undergraduate instructor at Loyola University Chicago. He has expertise in addressing the complexities of community policing, juvenile crime, gangs, violence, patrol operations, police policy development, supervisory engagement, and management accountability. Lemmer has supervised police operations in several challenging settings, and he has two decades of experience directing, managing, and assessing other law enforcement supervisors and executives. He provides an effective management perspective drawn from his formal studies, research abilities, university-level teaching and in-service police trainer experiences, operational insights, and supervisory expertise. From this background, he created the “Eight Levels of Supervisory Engagement” and “Gratitude Leading Leadership” models. He remains an active law enforcement and public safety consultant, analyst, writer, and instructor. He is a frequent presenter at professional conferences and founder of the firm Secure 1776 – Public Safety Professional Resource, LLC. His consulting, member survey, and instructional services focus on leadership approaches that enhance agency performance, member wellness, and public safety. He is a member of the International Association of Chiefs of Police, Illinois Association of Chiefs of Police, Police Executive Research Forum, International Law Enforcement Educators and Trainers Association, Fellowship of Christian Peace Officers, and the Fraternal Order of Police, among other organizations. 

Session 1 (Main Stage):  Is it Me? Finishing Well

In life overall, and with all of its most consequential pursuits, finishing well is no accident. Chance alone will not bring the truest, most honorable, and impactful outcomes. No one gets to stay in the police profession forever. Staying on course to fully honor a police officer’s oath and finish well takes commitment, dedication, effort, and perseverance. Three interrelated beacons help provide clarity along the way. First, is the need to care. Caring in the sense of wanting to finish well. But also, caring in the sense of a concern for others. Second, is maintaining a full commitment to the police mission. Third, is truly understanding the full depth and meaning held within the question: Who do you serve? Psychologist Abraham Maslov provided us his insightful theory on the Hierarchy of Needs regarding human behavior and motivation. In policing, there is also a Hierarchy of Service. Within policing, those members who find and faithfully focus on the highest purpose of service are optimally positioned to finish well.

Session 2 (Breakout):   The Curse of Indifference

Among the worst guidance that those holding formal rank within a police agency can offer to their officers is to do nothing, beyond providing minimal responses to radio assignments. In reality, indifference can be as damaging to an agency as misconduct, and it can be even more difficult to correct. Leaving indifference unaddressed can curse a department. Proactive policing is among the profession’s greatest challenges. This session builds on a core element from our prior instruction. Leadership is an all-levels responsibility. Each police officer, even those not holding a formal rank, has the sworn duty to lead by example. That includes, having the courage to confront indifference among peers, particularly when deliberate inaction by other officers leaves the community vulnerable to crime and victimization. Deliberate indifference is wholly incompatible with the very mission of the police profession.